News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1887-09-22
And we walked up the broad aisle ter


gether, Hannibal and me. I a-leanin' OF
his arm, lookin' my best, and he hisn, will
everybody's eyes upon us tried not tC
feel proud, but it was a happy moment
for me- [ tell We. And when we SCI
down in the old pew where I'd set evel
sence was a baby, mother ON one side
Hannibal on t'other and me in the mid
die, it seemed awful pleasant, somehow:
seemed as if [ never loved the old church
so well. Not that there's anything nice
or harnsome bout our meetin' house IN
Craney Holler; it's almost barn COM
pared ter city churches, but it had one
recommend. 1t was surrounded by
natTr', whose God we had come to
adore. The great winders was wide
open and [ could look out on to the
common, all green and wavy with ma
pies, then away off acrost the medders,
and up, up to the woody hilltops that
touched the blue canopy O heaven.
Oh, how can anyody that lives in the
country everl lack forreligious privileges?
God is so nigh everywheres in natur',
and he speaks through her SO plain and
So direck! Why, if could git the time,
if l hadn't so much housewOrk ter dew
and one thing another, I'd make prac-
tiee o goin' out every day as reg'lar as
l say my prayers, to some beautiful,
sollum spot, a purpose to commune
with my Maker through natur'. In
no other way can we git SO near to
God.
As | said, it seemed uncommon pleas
ant to me in meetin' that Sunday morn
in. The horses stompin' in the sheds
didn't seem ter disturb me as usual, and
the ehirpin' of the birds, and the dronin'
of the crickets through the drowzy air
sounded awful nice and sOothln'. In
side, the house was full of good, old
fashioned smells. Patigony mint and
boys love and tanzy and cammomile;
for all the old ladies, and good many
of the young folks, had a bunch of one
or the other, and perhaps a sprig O
green caraway seed ter MUNICH away on,
in case they's inclined to be sleepy.
/ looked down to where dear old
Squire Brown set in his pew in front O
the pulpit-asleep and noddin' so quick
he was-and l noticed that one hand
wisely supported his head, in order ter
keep on his red wig o hair. But he
wa MT alwers so careful, for remem-
bered how nigh he often come ter losin'
ont, and how one Sunday it did actew-
ally slip clear off n his bald pate, and
how he jumped and clapped his hand to
his head, and all the young folks
laughed, and some O. the old ones. Even
Parson Lamson jest barely saved him
self by timely sneeze
Strange that all this should come
back to me so, ON my weddin' mornin',
but it did, and good deal more, and
had hard tussle bringin' myself into a
proper frame O mind to tend the ser
vice.
Mother alwers had him-book to her
self, ON account O. seein' better, We
know, so Hannibal and me we looked on
tergether, and 1 had the proud pleasure
O hearing him sing for the fust time.
He's got most powerful voice, and his
expression does beat all ! Everybody
was looking at him. Why he acted it
all out so, as you might say When he
struck high note he riz up to his full
statur', balanced himself kinder teenter-
in ON his toes, stretched up his neck,
rolled his eyes way inter the back part
of his head, and sech tone as he fetch
-high-oh, terrible high and on the
con try. when he sung a low note, he
Jest scrooched all down inter his STUN
much and chist, and somethin' rumbled
way down in his insides, low-oh, ter
rihle low and sollum 1 think his 'IoC
~ was the very lowest one I ever heer-
ed His singin' was sartinly imposin',
and I know it imposed on everybody
that heerd it. As for me, felt so ex-
cited and lifted up by it, that 1 KEEP
awake all through the sermon, and
didn't even nod once, and was right on
hand ter rouse up mother and Hannibal
in season for the doxology. Then came
the benediction, and We walked out ter
gether MS we came in, with everybody
lookin' and admirin' and envyin. And 1
tried ter realize that was married, and
that this was my weddin' day, but some,
how I couldn't; it all seemed like
lream,